The 2024 ACS Comes to a Successful Close
By David Savastano, Contributing Editor | 05.08.24
Show organizers, attendees and exhibitors reported that for the most part, the show met their expectations.
As the 2024 American Coatings Show and Conference came to a close, show organizers, attendees and exhibitors reported that for the most part, the show was a success.
The show, which is coordinated by AC Media, in collaboration with the American Coatings Association (ACA) and Vincentz Network, ran from April 30-May 2 at the Indianapolis Convention Center in Indianapolis, IN. Show organizers reported that there were 588 exhibitors spread over 138,800 square feet of exhibit space. All total, there were more than 9,000 total participants, including exhibitors and conference attendees.
The concurrent American Coatings Conference (ACC) featured 96 selected presentations, clustered in 16 sessions. The ACA reported that the conference drew 931 attendees from 29 countries.
During the conference, Dr. Robert Roop, senior vice president and CTO at Axalta Coating Systems, gave the keynote talk, while the 2024 American Coatings Award was presented to Michael Krayer, senior scientist and global technology manager – Dispersions & Resins North America, and Sean William Bullis, chemist II - Architectural Coatings.
“Building on more than a decade of success for this award-winning industry event that has become a major platform for companies to showcase products and conduct business, we were so pleased with the turnout and feedback from attendees who value the learning and networking experiences the event brings,” said Cheryl Matthews, senior vice president of events and expositions for the American Coatings Association, in discussing the show.
“Whether it’s information obtained at the product presentations or coatings research presented at the conference, we are grateful and proud to bring this valuable event back for industry and look forward to another successful event in 2026,” said Matthews.
Drew Vogel, chairman of Diamond Vogel, said he enjoyed the show.
“Our family has been in the paint and coatings business for 98 years, and my daughter is in the business now,” Vogel said. “It’s a wonderful industry and it’s always fun to be here and see old friends and see new innovations.”
For the most part, exhibitors were enthusiastic.
John McAllister, VP of sales for Micro Powders, said he thought it was a very good show with good quality of visitors.
“There is a huge interest in PTFE replacements,” added McAllister. “We are very happy with the show. It was one of the better American Coatings Shows we’ve been to.”
Robert Ruckle, global marketing and sales director, Siltech, said he thought the attendance was “moderate” in size, adding that many of the attendees seemed to come from the midwestern United States. He noted that Siltech did have some good meetings.
“We had some good quality discussions,” Ruckle said. “People here are more interested in doing transactions than just kicking tires.”
Nigel Atkinson, VP – paints and coatings for Arxada, reported that ACS 2024 was a success for Arxada.
“We were pleased with the level of interest in the Arxada booth and in our technical presentation at the conference,” said Atkinson. “We enjoyed the opportunity to speak with visitors about our broad portfolios of preservatives and additives, as well as our full range of technical and regulatory services. ACS continues to be an excellent venue for connecting with the paints and coatings industry and our valued customers, and for sharing our technical leadership as we continue to deliver Better Science to Solve the World’s Toughest Preservation Challenges.”
Joshua Wolfe, senior sales representative, Shamrock Technologies, said it was a busy show.
“There was more of a focus on sustainability and PTFE replacement at this year’s show,” Wolfe observed. “The people we are meeting with are bringing specific needs to us. There were also more product companies here than in the past.”
“We’ve had some really great touchpoints with global companies and international leads,” Rue Richey, marketing leader at Shamrock Technologies, added.
Vibrantz brought its new Pearls tinting system to the show, and Bo Drummen, product manager Innovatint | color solutions of Vibrantz, said that the show was “great.”
“There was a lot of attention on our new technology, and attendees were very interested in seeing what our Pearls technology can do,” Drummen noted. “People are seeing with their own eyes what it can do in real life. We also had interest from outside the architectural market, for example, powder coatings.”
Ramon Lozado, Vibrantz global product manager architectural coatings, added that “the show was well attended, and there was a large influx of people.”
Catherine Vitale, business development manager, PCA for Munzing, gave a technical talk on “Bio-Based Additives for Sustainable Building Material” during the ACC and said she saw a lot of interest afterward.
“We had a great response to my talk on dispersions in silicate beads,” said Vitale.
We had a very good turnout,” added Alicia Colacci, marketing specialist for Munzing. “Catherine had a good technical talk and a lot of people stopped by.”
However, Steffen Dobberstein, leader Business Unit Coatings, SONGWON Industrial Group, said he found the show to be “disappointing.”
“I was expecting much more traffic,” said Dobberstein. “Compared to the European Coatings Show and CHINACOAT, which were really busy, the ACA was not. We will need to reconsider exhibiting at the next ACS.”
Nature Coatings exhibited at the ACS for the first time, and Juan Marcano, director of sales for Nature Coatings, said it was a “tremendous show.”
“The show has been terrific,” said Marcano. “We are getting a lot of interest for companies coming to our booth looking for sustainability from our black pigment. Every customer we targeted came by.”
Skyler Hicks, junior sales representative at Nature Coatings, agreed with Marcano.
“It was our first show, and the show has been great,” Hicks said. “We had big name companies stop by and show interest. We are very happy with how it turned out.”
The next ACS is set for May 2026.
“The industry experienced three days full of networking opportunities at the leading North American coatings event. Exhibitors and attendees were very excited to make connections and enhance their industry knowledge. We are already looking forward to seeing you again in Indianapolis May 5-7, 2026,” said Matthias Janz, director of trade shows at Vincentz Network.
The show, which is coordinated by AC Media, in collaboration with the American Coatings Association (ACA) and Vincentz Network, ran from April 30-May 2 at the Indianapolis Convention Center in Indianapolis, IN. Show organizers reported that there were 588 exhibitors spread over 138,800 square feet of exhibit space. All total, there were more than 9,000 total participants, including exhibitors and conference attendees.
The concurrent American Coatings Conference (ACC) featured 96 selected presentations, clustered in 16 sessions. The ACA reported that the conference drew 931 attendees from 29 countries.
During the conference, Dr. Robert Roop, senior vice president and CTO at Axalta Coating Systems, gave the keynote talk, while the 2024 American Coatings Award was presented to Michael Krayer, senior scientist and global technology manager – Dispersions & Resins North America, and Sean William Bullis, chemist II - Architectural Coatings.
“Building on more than a decade of success for this award-winning industry event that has become a major platform for companies to showcase products and conduct business, we were so pleased with the turnout and feedback from attendees who value the learning and networking experiences the event brings,” said Cheryl Matthews, senior vice president of events and expositions for the American Coatings Association, in discussing the show.
“Whether it’s information obtained at the product presentations or coatings research presented at the conference, we are grateful and proud to bring this valuable event back for industry and look forward to another successful event in 2026,” said Matthews.
Drew Vogel, chairman of Diamond Vogel, said he enjoyed the show.
“Our family has been in the paint and coatings business for 98 years, and my daughter is in the business now,” Vogel said. “It’s a wonderful industry and it’s always fun to be here and see old friends and see new innovations.”
For the most part, exhibitors were enthusiastic.
John McAllister, VP of sales for Micro Powders, said he thought it was a very good show with good quality of visitors.
“There is a huge interest in PTFE replacements,” added McAllister. “We are very happy with the show. It was one of the better American Coatings Shows we’ve been to.”
Robert Ruckle, global marketing and sales director, Siltech, said he thought the attendance was “moderate” in size, adding that many of the attendees seemed to come from the midwestern United States. He noted that Siltech did have some good meetings.
“We had some good quality discussions,” Ruckle said. “People here are more interested in doing transactions than just kicking tires.”
Nigel Atkinson, VP – paints and coatings for Arxada, reported that ACS 2024 was a success for Arxada.
“We were pleased with the level of interest in the Arxada booth and in our technical presentation at the conference,” said Atkinson. “We enjoyed the opportunity to speak with visitors about our broad portfolios of preservatives and additives, as well as our full range of technical and regulatory services. ACS continues to be an excellent venue for connecting with the paints and coatings industry and our valued customers, and for sharing our technical leadership as we continue to deliver Better Science to Solve the World’s Toughest Preservation Challenges.”
Joshua Wolfe, senior sales representative, Shamrock Technologies, said it was a busy show.
“There was more of a focus on sustainability and PTFE replacement at this year’s show,” Wolfe observed. “The people we are meeting with are bringing specific needs to us. There were also more product companies here than in the past.”
“We’ve had some really great touchpoints with global companies and international leads,” Rue Richey, marketing leader at Shamrock Technologies, added.
Vibrantz brought its new Pearls tinting system to the show, and Bo Drummen, product manager Innovatint | color solutions of Vibrantz, said that the show was “great.”
“There was a lot of attention on our new technology, and attendees were very interested in seeing what our Pearls technology can do,” Drummen noted. “People are seeing with their own eyes what it can do in real life. We also had interest from outside the architectural market, for example, powder coatings.”
Ramon Lozado, Vibrantz global product manager architectural coatings, added that “the show was well attended, and there was a large influx of people.”
Catherine Vitale, business development manager, PCA for Munzing, gave a technical talk on “Bio-Based Additives for Sustainable Building Material” during the ACC and said she saw a lot of interest afterward.
“We had a great response to my talk on dispersions in silicate beads,” said Vitale.
We had a very good turnout,” added Alicia Colacci, marketing specialist for Munzing. “Catherine had a good technical talk and a lot of people stopped by.”
However, Steffen Dobberstein, leader Business Unit Coatings, SONGWON Industrial Group, said he found the show to be “disappointing.”
“I was expecting much more traffic,” said Dobberstein. “Compared to the European Coatings Show and CHINACOAT, which were really busy, the ACA was not. We will need to reconsider exhibiting at the next ACS.”
Nature Coatings exhibited at the ACS for the first time, and Juan Marcano, director of sales for Nature Coatings, said it was a “tremendous show.”
“The show has been terrific,” said Marcano. “We are getting a lot of interest for companies coming to our booth looking for sustainability from our black pigment. Every customer we targeted came by.”
Skyler Hicks, junior sales representative at Nature Coatings, agreed with Marcano.
“It was our first show, and the show has been great,” Hicks said. “We had big name companies stop by and show interest. We are very happy with how it turned out.”
The next ACS is set for May 2026.
“The industry experienced three days full of networking opportunities at the leading North American coatings event. Exhibitors and attendees were very excited to make connections and enhance their industry knowledge. We are already looking forward to seeing you again in Indianapolis May 5-7, 2026,” said Matthias Janz, director of trade shows at Vincentz Network.
